8 LOTR and Hobbit Actors Who Auditioned for Different Roles

The actors for the upcoming film, The Hunt for Gollum, were revealed at CinemaCon, and fans of Middle-earth have had a varied reaction. Many believe the cast of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings movies was flawless, so any changes feel risky. However, it’s worth remembering that the original Lord of the Rings cast wasn’t always the definitive lineup.

Most fans know several actors were considered for roles in The Lord of the Rings, including Liam Neeson, Nicolas Cage, and Uma Thurman. However, it’s less well-known that many actors who eventually appeared in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films initially tried out for different characters. While some of these alternate castings make sense, others would have been surprisingly strange.

Orlando Bloom Was Not Always an Elf in The Lord of the Rings

Orlando Bloom first gained widespread recognition for his role in The Lord of the Rings, a film that launched his career and led to parts in movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, Troy, and Kingdom of Heaven. He played Legolas and quickly became popular with audiences. Interestingly, he originally auditioned for the role of Faramir, a ranger who first appeared in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

No one has officially said why Orlando Bloom’s role changed, but his appearance was probably the reason. Billy Boyd, who played Pippin, remembered meeting Bloom at the airport and immediately thinking he looked like an elf. David Wenham, who ultimately played Faramir, was eleven years older than Bloom and looked more similar to Sean Bean, the actor who played Faramir’s brother, Boromir.

John Rhys-Davies Wanted a Smaller Role in The Lord of the Rings

Welsh actor John Rhys-Davies, already a well-known face from films like Indiana Jones and Shogun, played the Dwarf warrior Gimli in the Fellowship. He originally auditioned for the role of Lord Denethor, but director Peter Jackson and his team felt he’d be a better fit as a Dwarf – a funny choice considering Rhys-Davies was actually taller than many of the other actors!

John Rhys-Davies was unsure about playing Gimli at first. The role would take a long time to film, and he worried about the extensive makeup that would cover his face. However, he decided to take the part because he believed in the film. Rhys-Davies and Orlando Bloom had great chemistry as Gimli and Legolas, making it surprising to learn they were originally considered for a troubled father-son relationship.

Sir Christopher Lee Eyed a Different The Lord of the Rings Wizard

Sir Christopher Lee, a prominent actor in The Lord of the Rings, played the role of the villain Saruman the White. He was a longtime fan of the books and had even met the author, J.R.R. Tolkien, back in the 1950s. His experience and enthusiasm made him an ideal choice for the part of the White Wizard. Surprisingly, Lee originally wanted to play Gandalf the Grey, Saruman’s opponent.

Peter Jackson didn’t want to let Christopher Lee down, but he’d already envisioned Sir Ian McKellen as Gandalf. He was also concerned Lee, given his age, might find the role too physically challenging. Lee ultimately agreed to play Saruman, even though it wasn’t his first choice, and delivered a fantastic performance. He reprised the role in The Hobbit trilogy and, remarkably, even voiced Saruman after his death using previously recorded material for the animated film The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.

John Noble Was Considered For a Major The Lord of the Rings Villain

I was a little surprised when Peter Jackson didn’t choose Rhys-Davies as Denethor, but John Noble absolutely blew me away in the role. The filmmakers really wanted to emphasize how cruel and mad Denethor had become, and they definitely achieved that. Noble played him as someone truly awful, yet he also managed to hint at the noble man Denethor once was – those glimpses of lost honor were incredibly powerful.

During his audition, Noble read lines for both Denethor and Saruman. It’s easy to see him playing either role, as both characters shared similarities: they were once good and wise leaders who lost their way, and both had a contentious relationship with Gandalf. Interestingly, like Christopher Lee who originally played Saruman, Noble also has experience in horror films, having started his career in the 1988 thriller, The Dreamer.

Sylvester McCoy Waited Years For His Middle-earth Role

Sylvester McCoy, a Scottish actor famous for playing the seventh Doctor in Doctor Who, had a long and successful career before appearing as Radagast the Brown in The Hobbit trilogy. Director Peter Jackson, a big fan of Doctor Who, was excited to work with McCoy. Interestingly, McCoy almost appeared in a Hobbit movie more than ten years earlier!

Both Brian McCoy and Sir Ian Holm were considered for the role of Bilbo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings, but Sir Ian Holm was ultimately cast. While McCoy probably would have done a fine job as Bilbo, he was a much better fit for the character of Radagast, which allowed him to showcase his comedic skills.

John Callen Tried Out For Many Parts in The Hobbit

The cast of The Hobbit changed almost as frequently as the cast of The Lord of the Rings. John Callen played Oín, Gimli’s uncle who was hard of hearing. Callen wasn’t a famous actor – he’d only been in five films before The Hobbit – so he was thrilled to be part of a Middle-earth movie, although getting the role wasn’t straightforward.

Callen first auditioned for the parts of Radagast and the dragon Smaug, but didn’t get either role—McCoy and Benedict Cumberbatch were cast instead. As he shared in the documentary Icons Unearthed: Lord of the Rings, he thought that meant he wouldn’t be in The Hobbit at all. However, a week later, his agent called with good news: he’d been chosen to play a dwarf. While his character, Oín, didn’t have as much screen time as Radagast or Smaug, he became a memorable part of the trilogy.

Adam Brown and Dean O’Gorman Wanted to Star in The Hobbit

Interestingly, two of Callen’s co-stars from The Hobbit originally auditioned for a different part. Adam Brown, who played Ori, and Dean O’Gorman, who played Fíli (one of Thorin Oakenshield’s nephews), both tried out for the role of young Bilbo before being cast in the Company of Thorin.

Ultimately, Martin Freeman got the role and his performance was a standout in the films. Even people who didn’t love The Hobbit generally agreed he was perfectly cast, stepping into the role previously held by Ian Holm. While not selected as the main hobbit, Dominic Brown and Aidan O’Gorman impressed director Peter Jackson enough to be cast as members of Thorin’s company of dwarves.

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2026-04-21 23:00